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Bezig met laden... Rainbow Dust: Three Centuries of Delight in British Butterfliesdoor Peter Marren
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"Like fluttering shards of stained glass, butterflies possess a unique power to pierce and stir the human soul. Indeed, the ancient Greeks explicitly equated the two in a single word, psyche, so that from early times butterflies were not only a form of life, but also an idea. Profound and deeply personal, written with both wisdom and wit, Peter Marren?s Rainbow Dust explores this idea of butterflies--the why behind the mysterious power of these insects we do not flee, but rather chase. At the age of five, Marren had his "Nabokov Moment," catching his first butterfly and feeling the dust of its colored scales between his fingers. It was a moment that would launch a lifetime's fascination rivaling that of the famed novelist--a fascination that put both in good company. From the butterfly collecting and rearing craze that consumed North America and Europe for more than two hundred years (a hobby that in some cases bordered on madness), to the potent allure of butterfly iconography in contemporary advertisements and their use in spearheading calls to conserve and restore habitats (even though butterflies are essentially economically worthless), Marren unveils the many ways in which butterflies inspire us as objects of beauty and as symbols both transient and transcendent. Floating around the globe and through the whole gamut of human thought, from art and literature to religion and science, Rainbow Dust is a cultural history rather than merely a natural one, a tribute to butterflies' power to surprise, entertain, and obsess us. With a sway that far surpasses their fragile anatomy and gentle beat, butterfly wings draw us into the prismatic wonders of the natural world--and, in the words of Marren, these wonders take flight."--Dust jacket. Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)595.78Natural sciences and mathematics Zoology Arthropoda Insects: Insecta, Hexapoda Lepidoptera: butterflies, mothsLC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
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However, this is not another guidebook about butterflies, rather a guidebook about butterfly lovers. Marren’s deep passion about his subject is evident as he brings us the stories and potted biographies and histories of those that have had a similar passion to him. We learn about the Rothschild family members who were equally besotted, what John Fowles and Vladimir Nabokov liked to collect and how butterflies have inspired countless artists and writers. He guides us through the extinctions of some and the reintroduction of the Large Blue and takes us through the life cycle right from the egg to the next generation.
His writing is authoritative without being tiresome and it flits along at a fair old pace. It is also a warning; we have been persecuting all sorts of wildlife in this country, and the relentless push to greater efficiency and cost savings has put butterflies and many of their habitats in peril. I liked the mix of solid science and research with a series of personal stories and it is a really good general book in the study of his favourite insect. ( )